Deptford Lounge 2015

Switch on NOW: 6 – 11 July

A Festival of Arts and Mindfulness events Tapping into your Creative Potential

NOW Live Events are happy to be back at Deptford Lounge with an innovative programme of arts and wellbeing activities for all ages. Our events aim to stimulate the senses, lighten the mind and savour the moment with some of UK’s most inspiring artists and thinkers, locally and beyond. This year we are focusing on creativity – why it is important and how we can tap into our creative potential – as well as thinking about wellbeing and what gives our lives meaning.

“(NOW Live Events) rid us of the myriad modern-day distractions that stop us from embracing the fullness of the present moment…using unconventional artistic methods ” – The Independent

How to Take Part:

Most day-time workshops are free but ticketed, so early booking is advised. Some other events are ticketed at £6, £4 Concessions and £3 for Deptford residents, again early booking is advised.

Please click on the title of each event for more details on our collaborators.

Downloadable Programme

Click the above image for an easy-to-view downloadable guide of the full Switch On NOW programme.

Schedule of Events

Over the Whole Week

Chronophone is a telephone service that allows people to call themselves – one year from now. Calling the Chronophone is simple – visit the cafe, pick up a voucher (£1) and take some time to think about what you want to tell your future self…then make the call.

Throughout the week, 9.30am will mark the moment for poet and spoken word artist Simon Mole’s daily mindfulness poem. On Monday, Wednesday and Friday, these audio recordings will be followed by the chance to sit down with Simon for a cuppa and a chat about the poem you’ve heard that day, as well as any other thoughts/ideas/memories it might have sparked off…

Monday 6 July: Visual Arts & Crafts

All Day

Dump Your Junk – CRAFTIMATION FACTORYYou are invited to purge on paper everything you are carrying around in your head that you would ideally like to be free of.The paper will be posted anonymously (sealed in an envelope) in a brightly coloured ‘post box’.There will be a ceremonious reading of the dumped thoughts at the end of the day.

FREE (Unticketed) – All Welcome.

8:30am – 9:15am

Opening to Mindfulness– MARK OVLANDIn this session we’ll be looking at what mindfulness is, where it’s come from and why everyone seems to be talking about it. Most importantly, we’ll be giving it a go. All are welcome, from the keen and the curious to the deeply sceptical, so come find out for yourself the truth behind the buzzword.

2:00pm – 2:45pm

What is the Point of Mindfulness? – DR. ORNELLA CORAZZAThis workshop will help you to find new ways of enhancing your creative potential, emotional wellbeing and relationships with others in order to achieve a successful future. We will explore topics related to nature, self-image and the practise of self-development by introducing relevant themes from the biological sciences and mindfulness practices.

3:00pm – 3:45pm

Artwork Skull: Taboo Thoughts– CRAFTIMATION FACTORYTake part in an exploration of ourselves with Janey Moffat from Craftimation Factory, focusing on our ‘taboo thoughts’. You will be given access to a wide range of materials including fabric, cardboard and paint in order to create an artwork skull, meditating on why we don’t like to think about everyday subjects like death and mental health as a society.

4:00pm – 4:45pm

South London Women Artists – JACKIE BROWNArtist Jackie Brown leads a drawing workshop focusing on our immediate senses and how to turn these into a drawing. We will explore what our senses tell us about our inner and outer environments, offering a fascinating insight into how to express ourselves fully through drawing a sensation or a feeling.

5:00pm – 5:45pm

Craftivist’s Garden: Wellmaking– CRAFTIVIST COLLECTIVECraftivist Collective’s founder Sarah Corbett presents a practical workshop about craft as a meditative tool to stop, reflect and act on wellbeing in a gentle yet transformative way. This embroidery workshop aims to improve wellbeing by involving participants like me and you in the fun, connected, sensory and mindful process of making things.

7:00pm – 8:00pm

Happiness Now– ACTION FOR HAPPINESS (Vanessa King)In this interactive session, Vanessa King of Action for Happiness will help us unpack what happiness means to us and why it matters personally, at home, at work and for our communities. She’ll help us explore some of the key ingredients for happiness, how what we notice makes a difference and we’ll try out some actions we can take in our daily lives that can help us, and others, to feel good and function well day-to-day.

Tuesday 7 July: Dance, Performance & Theatre

8:30am – 9:15am

Movement Workshop– MEG SAUNDERSThis morning movement session will focus on awakening and preparing the body for the day ahead. We will pay attention to weight and centering oneself through gravity and flow, leading towards a more energised state of moving. All levels welcome.

2:00pm – 2:55pm

Creativity in the Moment– SHAMA RAMANJoin neuroscientist Dr Shama Rahman of award-winning theatre company, “Jugular: Joining The Head and The Heart”, as we demystify the science of creativity and how we can access it for ourselves through simple storytelling theatre techniques.

3:00pm – 3:45pm

Moving Matters– KIMBERLEY PENAA movement workshop lead by Dance Movement Psychotherapist Kimberley Pena. This worksop is aimed at women moving in the community to find support while exploring the impact of moving as a female, both individually and collectively.

FREE (TICKETED) – This workshop is open to women aged 18+.

4:00pm – 4:45pm

The Unlympics– fanSHENThis family friendly workshop takes familiar events and turns them upside down and inside out to playfully question whether being the biggest, fastest, strongest really is what we’re after. Events – in what will probably be a heptathlon – include the 100 metres Slowest Running, Strictly Come Tiniest Dancing and more. Practise your focusing skills in a whole new way.

5:00pm – 5:45pm

Finding Ideas Through Play– AMPERSAND MEDIAAmpersand Media will take you through the techniques that they use when creating their show ‘Storylines’. It will be silly. It will be ridiculous. You may laugh a lot, and hopefully by the end of the session you’ll feel that you have something you’re brave enough to perform.

7:00pm – 8:00pm

How to Have That Big Conversation– SARAH ROZENTHULERHaving life-changing conversations and talking about something that matters is a big threshold to cross. This fascinating workshop with psychologist Sarah Rozenthuler, author of Life-Changing Conversations: 7 Strategies For Talking About What Matters Most, will give you the know-how to have that significant conversation, whether at home or at work.

Wednesday 8 July: Senses

8:30am – 9:15am

How to Breathe Yourself Better– MICHAEL TOWNSEND-WILLIAMSIn this workshop, Michael Townsend Williams will share how his awareness of breathing has changed his life. Adman turned yoga teacher and mindfulness coach, Michael is an advocate of ‘welldoing’ – leading a busy and productive life, but not at the expense of our health and wellbeing. And key to this is our breath.

FREE (TICKETED) – All welcome aged 14+

12:30pm – 1:45pm

Connecting to Contemporary Dance – BETH PETERSExploring connectivity to breath, space, and people, this engaging class is influenced by Release-based technique using a combination of falling, shifting and creative improvisation. The classes focus on strength resistance coordination and musicality to encourage freedom of movement, and awareness of the body in the moment. All levels welcome.

3:00pm – 3:45pm

Real Life Mindfulness– MARK OVLANDIn this session we’ll be exploring what mindfulness is and how it can make a real difference in your life. As well as opportunities to learn basic techniques there’ll be time for questions and discussion so you’ll have everything you need to make a start.

4:00pm – 6:00pm

The Slow Creative– JACKEE HOLDER & SARAH HICKSONWe are fast becoming a society that favours speed over slow but what if slow actually creates more time, not less? The slow creative workshop brings together local artists Sarah Hickson and Jackee Holder in a multi media workshop bringing together the art of slow writing and the art of slow photography.

FREE (TICKETED)- All welcome aged 7+. Adults need to accompany children under 12.

7:00pm – 8:00pm

Sensory Running– SARAH WAITESomehow, in the journey out West, meditation and mindfulness lost some of its active, playful nature. The truth is you don’t have to sit still in silence to meditate. Join Sarah Waite, runner and meditation coach, for a magical run around Deptford, using art and simple techniques to reimagine meditation and running.

3:00pm – 6:00pm

The Words Doctor – RACHEL KELLYBestselling author and former Times journalist Rachel Kelly is #thewordsdoctor, telling the story of how poetry was at the heart of her recovery from two depressive episodes. Visit Rachel for a five minute appointment, share your problem and she will share with you the words that might help you through it.

3:00pm – 3:45pm

Life Writing Studio– PROMPT ARTSThe Prompt Arts Life Writing Studio is where writing workshop meets artist’s studio. The workshop encourages you to focus on your response to objects (and corresponding sensations) taken from the area surrounding Deptford Lounge, actively engaging with the world around.

FREE (TICKETED) – All welcome aged 11+.

4:00pm – 4:45pm

London-based poet, emcee and theatre maker Simon Mole invites you to take part in a relaxed yet thought provoking session using free-writing and poetry to explore our responses to change and transition. For all levels.

7:00pm – 8:00pm

Join one of theleading storytellers, specialising in stories from Africa, the Caribbean and Arabia. Storytelling takes us on a journey of the imagination, encouraging us to engage the senses and savour the moment. Come and join Jan Blake to experience worlds of love, hate, trickery and fate. You will be joining gods, animals and human beings on their journeys through their lives and hear how they have become immortal through the tales of people.

3:30pm – 4:15pm

Singing in the Moment – AMPERSAND MEDIACome and join in a joyous session of making up tuneful noise. We’ll play with the sound of our voices and write some wonderful songs, proving together that anyone can sing and make up music that reflects how they feel.

4:00pm – 4:45pm

Treasuring the Now – MC ANGELThis workshop explores the treasures to be found in our lives right now expressed through spoken word. We will focus on our present life situations, discovering the gems in the lessons and teachings we receive in the moment.

4:50pm – 5:00pm

Performance – MC ANGELMC Angel gives a short performance of her award winning poetry and rap to Deptford Lounge. Come and hear the voice that has created ripples around the country including songs from her album ‘Peace, Love & Unity’.

FREE (TICKETED) – All welcome.

5:00pm – 5:45pm

The Soundtrack of Our Lives – ALASTAIR CREAMERThis workshop invites you to think of a memory that is triggered by a specific piece of music, or it may be that you start with the music and that triggers the memory.Either way, we will write down our songs and the memory associated with it, celebrating the power of music in our lives.

7:00pm – 8:00pm

The Art of Reflection– ALASTAIR CREAMERUsing art, music and your own way with words, Alastair will guide you on a journey that starts with a picture and ends with a reflection about yourself.Come and find out more about the way you see, hear and express your experience of the world.

Saturday 11 July: Families

10:00am – 10:45am

In this workshop, children and families will experience INSIDE OUT’s 5 Keys to Happiness in fun and engaging ways. By inspiring children to be happy inside and out, they are more likely to fulfil their potential and grow into happy adults. And learn better too.

FREE (TICKETED) – All welcome. Children under 12 need to be accompanied by an adult.

12:00pm – 12:45pm

Free to Move – TEMUJIN GILLRediscover the joy of natural and engaging movement to some seriously contagious and foot tapping music. Learn new skills and tap into the power and joy of working in harmony as a group.

2:00pm – 2:45pm

This session will be an introduction to various mindfulness meditation practices, inviting presence and peace in ourselves, offering it to those around us and showing ways to maintain it in our everyday lives.

3:00pm – 4:30pm

Do Nice Be Kind Spread Happy – BERNADETTE RUSSELLSince August 2011, after a chance encounter in a post office in Deptford, Bernadette Russell decided to try to be kind to a stranger every single day for a year. Find out what Bernadette got up to that year and since, see some great pictures from her book Do Nice Be Kind Spread Happy and get to do some fun kindnesses of your own.